


Flying Blind

by _crime lord_ (goddamnit_cherik)



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Wings, Domestic Avengers, Everyone Is Poly Because Avengers, Hurt Tony Stark, I'm Bad At Titles, M/M, Mild Hurt/Comfort, Multi, No Smut, Past Torture, Polyamory, Protective Steve Rogers, Self-Acceptance, Self-Hatred, Tony Angst, Tony Feels, Tony Stark Has A Heart, Tony Stark Needs a Hug, Unhealthy Coping Mechanisms, Wingfic, Wings, everyone has wings, the time line is a bit out of whack, there is a lot of exposition sorry
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-15
Updated: 2019-07-15
Packaged: 2020-06-27 09:46:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,781
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19788346
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/goddamnit_cherik/pseuds/_crime%20lord_
Summary: Ever since his abduction by the Ten Rings in 2008, Anthony Edward Stark has put on a brave face and a snarky smile. Fans cheer for him, his fellow Avengers appreciate him, and the news seems to support him. (Mostly). And now Tony's ready for some action in the love department, particularly with Steve Rogers and his companion Bucky Barnes. Only one problem...their wings are beautiful and Tony's are stumps.





	Flying Blind

The Stark Expo had gone well by everyone's standards. Except Stark's of course. 

He had presented his new Mechanical Wing prototypes to the crowd, and it was absolute pandemonium for the rest of the night. Now all the disabled persons without wings could have an option to regain wings of their very own. Any color, any style, and any modification was available at relatively low costs. (If you called several hundred dollars cheap, that is). Bat wings, angel wings, butterfly wings, and demon wings for the edgy youth were all presented with the same gusto as last year's Iron Man armor show. The media eagerly showered Stark with praise at his progressiveness and philanthropic desire to help the disadvantaged wingless folk, though of course some criticized him for the price. Business was positively booming. 

And yet Tony still went back to the tower dejected. 

No artificial wings could replace the ones he had lost during the Ten Ring's brutal torture. He so desperately wished to feel his wings spread open and flutter in the breeze; he ached for the freedom of unencumbered flight. But both things were torn from him in a single agonizing moment. The clipping of his wings was a moment that he would never forget and would never wish upon his worse enemy. Now his wings were made of the same material that his armor was made of; a cold and hard gold titanium alloy. Of course, they were not distinguishable from normal wings. They imitated the natural limbs almost perfectly. But the one thing they could not replicate was the feeling of having wings in the first place. 

And the worst thing? His wings were not advanced enough to permit flight. Tony would remain grounded, never to fly without his armor's aid ever again. 

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 

"Tony? Hey Tony, you in there?" Stark was suddenly aware of Steve's voice cutting through his stupor. 

"Yeah." Shaking his head slightly, Tony stood up from the Avengers Tower breakfast table. Everyone was here except for Bruce and Thor. Probably off world on a mission. 

"I saw the Expo on the television. That was a great presentation! I really think you're doing great things by offering the Mecha Wings to the public." Steve's warm smile stretched all the way to his shining blue eyes, which matched his sky blue angel wings. The sight of his approval made his insides feel all buttery. 

"Why thank you. I would've liked to see you there." Tony responded suggestively. He leaned on the counter irreverently. 

"I wanted to make time for it, but Bucky and I had a prior arrangement. I'm sure you could relate." Rogers almost seemed to be elbowing the smaller man with smarmy glances. Tony recognized the looks for what they were and smirked back. 

"You enjoying your time with your new cyborg sugar daddy?" 

"For the last time, Bucky isn't a cyborg! He just has a metal arm, which is great for...certain things." Tony felt his chest tighten a little, but outwardly he only laughed while Steve slouched triumphantly. 

"Ah, I'll just pretend that I didn't just hear your sacred American mouth utter those words!" Tony smiled at Steve right before Natasha and Clint walked in from their quarters. Clint's purple wings were fluttering happily while Natasha's bright orange ones were protectively outstretched towards her archer companion. They were both positively glowing. 

"Who put happy pills in their drinks?" Tony muttered to himself. Secretly, he was admiring their wings like he did almost every morning. He so badly wanted to stroke them; to feel how alive each feather was. Unlike the dead metal his were composed of. Instead of indulging him, Natasha raised her eyebrow. 

"You dyed your wings again." 

Indeed, Tony's wings were now red and gold, a stark difference from their previous blue and white. 

"I got bored of the blue and white, looked too much like a stuck up weatherman's." Tony almost automatically switched to his irreverent, smarmy facade. Clint laughed and Natasha only looked at his wings more intently. 

"You shouldn't dye them too much; the pigment could permanently damage their natural color. Wouldn't want you to walk around with a "stuck up weatherman's" wings forever." 

Tony grinned and turned so that wings were facing away from the group. Already, the day was starting off tremendously awful. 

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Tony had retreated to his workshop while the other Avengers went out flying together. Steve always considered their flying sessions to be a great 'team building' exercise, but all it really did was remind Tony that he couldn't join in. Steve always had this disappointed look on his face when Tony inevitably refused his invitation to fly with them. The rest never paid much attention to his consistent refusals. 

But, suddenly struck with a flash of anger, Stark decided that he would make them pay attention. He _could_ fly. Just not by himself. And he'll be damned if the others have all the fun. 

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Steve Rogers loved flying with the team; it felt so _right_ to flock and just feel the wind carry them to wherever the sky wished them to go. Bucky at his side and Clint and Natasha right behind him. But despite his euphoria he still felt the sting that something was missing. Their snarky scientist was never here with them. It just felt unusually quiet without his constant barrage of comments and suggestions. He glanced at Bucky and somehow Steve knew that his lover felt the same. 

Fortunately, they didn't feel Tony's absence for long. 

The signature repulsor beam noises surrounded the team suddenly, along with the pleasant mechanical groan of the metal plates rubbing together. Iron Man had arrived. 

"You didn't think I'd leave you to enjoy this beautiful day all by yourselves did you?" Tony's voice came through distorted by the face plate, giving it that distinctive metallic tinge. "That's downright ill eagle, Captain." Steve laughed; puns were his guilty pleasure. 

"Oh yeah? Well toucan play at that game!" Steve suddenly nosedived, taking the rest of his companions by surprise. Not Tony, however. He followed Rogers with Bucky right on his tail. Tony's heads up display screamed at him to pull up, but he would not relent; if Steve wanted a chase he would get one. In Tony's peripheral he could see Barnes trying to overtake him and reach Steve first, using his silver bat wings to slide through the air like a bullet. It was impressive, but not nearly enough to match the armor. With one little adjustment to the thrusters, Tony began approaching Steve even faster. 

But the Captain was clever and shot up once Tony reached out to touch him. Bucky was ready for it and began pursuing Rogers back up, while Tony took a moment to do a little math. He quickly calculated in his head where he would be mostly likely to catch Steve the fastest. Smirking, he fired up the suit once again and flew after the two twirling figures. Steve was expertly dodging Bucky, who was getting playfully agitated at the super soldier's evasion. But before he could make a move to tackle Steve, Tony blew past him and grappled with Rogers. The two men tussled in the air for a bit before Steve turned himself around so that Tony was basically carrying him aloft. Steve tapped on the face plate and smiled sweetly. 

"Take that off so I can see your eyes." 

After smoothing his surprised face, Tony obliged and pulled up the face plate. _God, Steve's eyes are so pretty._

"You should come along to dinner. Bucky and I are going to eat out tonight; we'd like you to be there." 

If Tony wasn't surprised already, he certainly was now. 

"Oh you bet your ass I'll be there. But only if I can buy out the restaurant." 

It was Steve's turn to smile. His cheeks were as red as a sunset. 

"I definitely wouldn't object to some peace and qu-" 

Bucky Barnes slammed into Steve before he could finish his sentence. In one fell swoop the two men rocketed towards the ground in a wild embrace of feathers and laughter. Not one to be left behind, Tony put down the face plate and smirked. 

"Hey Baba Yaga, get off the Captain, he's sensitive!" 

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

It was now seven in the evening, thirty minutes before Tony's night out with the love birds. And he was _nervous._

He had decided not to buy out the venue. It was too much, they would want some other people around surely. It was just a causal joint, nothing formal at all, but Tony couldn't help but feel under dressed in his graphic tee and black blazer. Should he go with the silver pants or black pants? Skinny or baggy? Shaking his head in frustration, he just flipped a coin on both. He ended up with silver skinny pants. Good enough. 

The real issue was choosing what color he wanted his wings to be tonight. He was still unsure about whether or not Steve and Bucky actually liked the Red and Gold. Was it too bright or not bright enough? What the hell, Tony figured. Red and Gold's his signature, he'll make it work. 

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Barnes and Rogers were getting antsy. Steve wondered if Tony would even accept the possibility of dating the both of them. Bucky wondered if Tony actually liked him enough _to_ date him. Polyamory was a thing the men had learned about only recently, but they sure as hell were excited that the world allowed something like this to even have a name. Being as modern as he was, Steve knew that Tony probably had heard of it before. But whether or not he would participate in it remained to be seen. Fortunately for the super soldiers, they wouldn't have to think about that any longer. Tony's favorite black Audi pulled up and out popped the man himself. 

His red and gold wings were especially shiny, and his outfit was as immaculate as ever. Bucky smiled at Steve and gestured for Tony to walk with them. And walk with them he did. 

The food was delicious, but Tony barely noticed. He was fixated on the duos beautiful wings. Each feather was glistening and so real. Bucky's looked leathery and unique. He ached to touch them, and to be touched in return. But the cold metal on his back reminded him of how impossible that was yet again. 

"So, we have something that we'd like to say, Tony." Steve's voice broke through Tony's haze of depression like a welcoming ray of sunshine. 

Tony allowed his heart to swell up in anticipation and hope. Why would these two men invite him here to this restaurant if not to announce something big, something important? Maybe...maybe they were...

"We'd like to date you. There, I said it. Steve wasn't going to." Steve elbowed Bucky playfully. 

"I thought we agreed that I was going to say it!" Rogers looked mortified at Bucky's forwardness, but he still had a warm twinkle in his eyes. 

"No, I could tell you were going to pussy out." 

While the two were quipping, Tony was having twelve different crisis' at the same time. _They wanted to date him? Both of them?_

Tony had never considered that the both of them were interested in him romantically. And were both okay with a poly relationship. What the hell? This was _so_ not what Tony was expecting. 

"Hold on, I think I'm having a stroke. You guys want to do _what?_ I mean, a poly relationship would be goddamn amazing, but weren't you guys raised to be good little boys and never engage in 'deviancy'?" 

Steve raised one eyebrow. 

"That may be, but I don't think being in love with two great people is deviant." Steve said with a straight face, but humor sparked in his eyes. 

"The current political climate would have words with you, young man." 

Throughout the whole conversation, Tony had become increasingly aware of his wings feeling heavier and heavier on his back. At first he dismissed it as his own feelings amplifying everything around him, but no, it was clear that his wings were becoming physically heavier. 

_Fuck. When I greased them I forgot a bolt. Fuck._

And to make matters worse, Steve unfurled his angelic wings and presented them. Of course, Tony had been presented to many times by all the one night stands he had experienced, and Pepper had even presented to him once or twice when she was feeling good, but never had presenting hit him so hard. Steve really was serious about dating him. And Bucky, never one to let Steve have all the fun, puffed up his bat wings. Tony knew that he _had_ to follow suit, missing bolt or not. He needed to return the duos affections. 

He activated the opening sequence for his wings and that's when it all went wrong. 

Finally unable to support all the weight on it, the base of the wing gave out. It snapped in half and fell to the floor. 

"Jesus Christ! Holy fuck, are you okay?" Steve went to grab Tony's shoulder and analyse his "wound", but his hand was slapped away. With an emotionless tone, Tony muttered to his glasses to get him a suit. Within seconds an Iron Man suit was there and waiting for its pilot. Safety had arrived to take Stark away from the scene that was crushing his heart and spitting on it. The suit closed around him before his eyes could unleash the storm they were holding back. The effort of keeping his composure in front of Steve and Bucky rendered Tony deaf to the two men's pleas for him to stay. The entire restaurant by this point had turned to look at the crumbling millionaire and his two despondent suitors. Totally unresponsive, Tony Stark flew away into the night. 

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

"Jarvis, where's Tony?" 

"He told me not to tell you that, Mr. Rogers. He is in...quite a sorrowful state at the moment." 

Bucky scowled. 

"Jarvis, did he say anything about you not being able to tell us where he keeps his alcohol?" 

"No, I do not believe he did." Bucky could almost hear Jarvis sympathizing with them. 

"Tell us, please." 

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Tony was _not_ going to be depressed and sober. 

He was determined to forget the whole night and start over. Maybe he should buy an island and build a tower there instead. He could run a resort for sad people. That would certainly make a pretty penny. Unable to control himself, he launched into a giggling fit that rapidly morphed into a little sobbing fit. He hated himself. He hated his stumps. He hated having to put on mechanical wings every morning. He hated not feeling the wind in his hair. He hated the Ten Rings for forcing this onto him. He hated everyone else for having wings when he didn't. He hated himself. 

"We don't hate you, Tony." 

Steve and Bucky entered the cellar gently. 

"I was saying all that out loud? I didn't think I was _that_ drunk yet..." He trailed off, unable to think of anything clever to retort with. Goddammit. 

"Hey, hey...it's alright. We don't hate you, quite the opposite." 

Bucky and Steve knelt down to be on Tony's level, which just so happened to be on the floor. 

"It doesn't matter that you don't have real wings. We're attracted to _you,_ not your wings or your money." 

Bucky put a comforting hand on Tony's shoulder and looked him right in the eyes. 

"I get it. You want to be normal; you want others to accept you. But how can they accept you for who you really are if you never show them the real you?" 

In his intoxicated state, Tony couldn't think of anything to say. No words could convey the bubbling and slithering helplessness he felt at being found out. He just didn't know what to do. 

"I can't show the world how...The people need a role model, okay-" 

"No, what they need is someone who's secure enough to let his hair down, Tony. There's nothing wrong with being without wings, you just need us to help you. We'll always love you, no matter what color wing you choose to wear." 

Tony couldn't take it anymore. His entire thought process came crashing down around him, and the weight of it was enormous. His head pounded with the effort of keeping in tears. Steve and Bucky couldn't bear watching their friend suffer anymore. So they did what any love struck fools would do. They gave the crying man a hug. And a kiss on the forehead for good measure. 


End file.
